A Sampling of Clips for January 20^th, 2009

* UCSD faculty and staff may obtain a copy of an article by e-mailing the University Communications Office

Test Subjects Who Call the Scientist Mom or Dad
The New York Times, Jan. 20 -- Other researchers have studied their own children in the past, but sophisticated technology allows modern-day scientists to collect new and more detailed data. The scientists also say that studying their children allows for more in-depth research and that the children make reliable participants in an era of scarce research financing. (Quotes UCSD researchers Gedeon Deak and Karen Dobkins) More

Similar story in
International Herald Tribune
Cleveland Plain Dealer
Seattle Times
San Diego Union-Tribune

Trying Anything and Everything for Autism
The New York Times, Jan. 19 -- Rochelle and Ian Yankwitt were thrilled when their son, Casey, was born seven years ago, 19 months after the birth of their daughter. But their delight was short-lived. At 7 months, this otherwise happy infant failed to respond to his name or any attempt to engage him with words, his mother recalled in an interview. (Quotes Laura Schreibman, a psychologist who is the director of the Autism Research Program at UCSD) More

A Smarter Stimulus
The New Yorker, Jan. 20 -- Cutting taxes is usually a surefire political winner. Yet Barack Obama’s plan to include more than a hundred billion dollars in individual tax rebates in his stimulus package has earned him criticism from both ends of the political spectrum. (Mentions research by Ayelet Gneezy of UCSD’s Rady School of Management) More

A Fly by Any Other Name
Nature, Jan. 18 -- The Byzantine world of species taxonomy is facing a new test: a proposal that would involve renaming Drosophila flies, arguably the leading model genetic organism. (Quotes Therese Markow, a geneticist at UCSD) More

How Strangers Can Make You Happy
Voice of America, Jan. 20 -- What makes people happier: money or having happy friends and neighbors? Researchers from Harvard University and UCSD, have found an answer as part of a study. More

With Stimulus, There's More Bang in Each Buck
Los Angeles Times, Jan. 17 -- The $825-billion stimulus proposal that Democrats unveiled this week may encounter stiff opposition from conservatives on Capitol Hill. But it isn't meeting significant resistance from conservative economists. (Quotes Valerie Ramey, an economist at UCSD) More

Forest’s Lexapro Had Benefit in Study of Anxious Older Adults
Bloomberg, Jan. 20 -- Forest Laboratories Inc.’s antidepressant Lexapro aided older adults suffering from an anxiety disorder, a study found. (Mentions UCSD) More

Deep Sea-crets
San Diego Union-Tribune, Jan. 19 -- Late last summer and early autumn, researchers from Scripps Institution of Oceanography and several Mexican universities plumbed the depths of the Gulf of California in a series of unprecedented expeditions. More

Anti-Gang Program Promotes Education
San Diego Union-Tribune, Jan. 17 -- San Diego's gang homicides have been climbing for the past few years, and UCSD alumnus Christopher Yanov knows that the slayings can leave an especially lasting impact on the victims' younger brothers and sisters. To help end the cycle of gang violence, Yanov and his nonprofit youth program, Reality Changers, are reaching out to those siblings to provide education and hope. More

Obituary: Betty Freeman; Generous Music Patron and Champion of UCSD
San Diego Union-Tribune, Jan. 18 -- The struggling composer, Harry Partch, who lived in Encinitas for several years before he died, was among those who received financial support from Betty Freeman. Partch invented a 43-tone musical scale and a variety of instruments to play his works. He also taught for a time at UCSD. Mrs. Freeman later donated her extensive collection of music scores, letters and concert programs to the UCSD music department. More

They Came to Brawl, Rock Out and Play
San Diego Union-Tribune, Jan. 19 -- Hundreds of gamers took part in the fifth annual Winter Game Fest at UCSD. The festival began Saturday and ended yesterday. More

New Administration May Boost Stem Cell Research in San Diego
KPBS, Jan. 19 -- In 2001, President George W. Bush told the nation he would place strict limits on the use of embryonic stem cells for medical research. As Barack Obama takes office he is expected to remove those restrictions... and do it quickly. That's good news to San Diego scientists who have devoted their careers to stem cell research. (Quotes UCSD researcher Lawrence Goldstein) More

The Speech
San Diego Union-Tribune, Jan. 20 -- Ted Sorensen was the architect of one of the most celebrated political speeches in American history, but he figures the pressure on Barack Obama and his team of speechwriters has been far greater than he ever felt. (Quotes UCSD political scientist Samuel Popkin) More

UCSD Medical Center Offers Stem Cell Study
News8, Jan. 16 -- The UCSD Medical Center is the first hospital in California to offer a new stem cell study, hoping to rebuild unhealthy hearts. Some people pay $50,000 for similar treatment overseas, but someone you love could enroll in the program for free. More

UCSD Enrolling Patients in Heart Study
North County Times, Jan. 18 -- UCSD Medical Center is enrolling patients in a Phase 2 clinical trial of an investigational drug for the treatment of advanced heart failure. The "Calcium Up-Regulation by Percutaneous Administration of Gene Therapy in Cardiac Disease," or CUPID, study is evaluating a new gene-based therapy designed to stimulate production of an enzyme that enables the heart to pump more effectively. More

* Subscribe with In the News and receive our clips automatically